The year 2017 was a rough one: lives were lost in devastating events, hate protests arose, and conflicts formed around the inauguration of President Donald Trump. With all of this negative energy, it’s easy to forget about the positives that we as women have achieved this year. To end this year in an optimistic light, here are the strides womankind have achieved this year.
1. #metoo
According to the world health organization, 35% of women have experienced physical or sexual abuse in their lifetime. That’s over ONE-THIRD of women. The hashtag, “me too”, was created on Myspace in 2007 by activist Tarana Burke to encourage women to speak out against these abusers. Actress Alyssa Milano popularized the hashtag in October of this year in wake of the accusations against Harvey Weinstein, an American film producer. The phrase has been tweeted more than 1.7 million times in 85 different countries. From Hollywood stars to blue collar workers, from ‘#metoo’ to ‘#MoiAussi’, no matter the place, women everywhere are breaking the silence and speaking out. It will no longer be fought in the dark, but out in the open with an army of women by their side.
2. Barbie wearing a hijab
Olympian fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad has become the first Olympic athlete to compete wearing a hijab. During an interview Muhammad said that she enjoyed playing with Barbies until she was a teenager, but was discouraged with the fact that none of her Barbie dolls looked like her, so she resorted to sewing mini hijabs onto their heads. In honor of her, Mattel has unveiled its first hijab-wearing Barbie doll in November that will be available in 2018 as part of Mattel’s “sheroes” line. Mattel is working to move away from the blonde, blue-eyed Barbie, starting in 2016 when they released their Barbie Fashionistas line with four body types, seven skin tones, and 24 hairstyles (npr Barbie heads).
3. Women granted right to drive in Saudi Arabia
In September of this year, Saudi Arabia announced that on June 24, 2018, women will be granted the right to drive. It was announced through a royal decree on live television along with a media event in Washington. This decision was created in hope to restore the country’s economy and international reputation. Ridiculous claims have been stopping women from driving, one being that driving harms women’s ovaries. With the growing number of women in the Saudi workforce, women were spending most of their salaries on drivers (NYT).